diff --git a/app/api/auth.py b/app/api/auth.py
index ad0f65f..1f34c33 100644
--- a/app/api/auth.py
+++ b/app/api/auth.py
@@ -76,9 +76,8 @@ async def create_profile(
     db: AsyncSession = Depends(get_db),
 ) -> UserProfile:
     # Check if any users exist; first user becomes admin automatically.
-    result = await db.execute(select(User))
-    existing = result.scalars().all()
-    is_first_user = len(existing) == 0
+    result = await db.execute(select(User.id).limit(1))
+    is_first_user = result.scalar_one_or_none() is None
 
     user = User(
         id=str(uuid.uuid4()),